Legal fees climb as city fights election lawsuit

The city of Brea so far has paid $154,000 in its ongoing legal battle over the validity of City Council-authored rebuttals to two 2012 ballot measures, city officials recently announced.

The case, Vargas v. Balz, hinges on the true authorship of an argument submitted to the Orange County Registrar of Voters ahead of the November 2012 election that aimed to dissuade voters from approving Measures T and U. Those measures dealt with government accountability.

On Sept. 13, 2012, an Orange County Superior Court judge ruled in favor of the council on Sept. 13, 2012, and the election went forward. Former Councilman Steve Vargas, though, has since asked the appellate court to overrule Judge Robert J. Moss’ decision, despite City Attorney Jim Markman arguing that the case is moot. The city incurs attorney’s fees throughout the legal process.

“The election has already happened,” Markman said. “There is nothing the court can do about that. The case is moot.”

Before the election, the council voted 3-0 to oppose the ballot measures. It held a special meeting and authorized then-Mayor Don Schweitzer and Councilman Brett Murdock to craft the rebuttal on behalf of the entire body.

On the registrar form submitted to City Clerk Cheryl Balz, Schweitzer signed his name as the author. But after consulting with Markman and the registrar’s office, Balz decided that it was more accurate to list the measure as City Council submitted.

Vargas, however, disagreed.

Vargas, who at the time was running to regain the seat he lost in 2002, filed the lawsuit, saying that Balz was presenting false information.

“(The rebuttals) weren’t written by the entire council,” Vargas said. “It was written by two people, Schweitzer and Murdock. That information changes how the public views the rebuttal.”

The judge, though, ruled that it is the clerk’s job to ensure the most accurate information gets to the public. Because the council voted to allow Schweitzer and Murdock to write the rebuttal, had Balz not listed the council as the submitter, she would have been deceiving the public.

Vargas appealed the ruling because he didn’t think the judge’s ruling was compelling enough and that his side didn’t get a fair shake in the trial.

“We want the judge to recognize his error,” he said.

At a recent council meeting, Finance Head Bill Gallardo and Markman announced how much the city has spent so far to fight the lawsuit.

The irony inherent in the case, according to Markman and Murdock, is that Vargas supported Measure T, which aimed to limit raises for certain city employees. The ideology behind the measure is to save money for the taxpayers. But the longer Vargas keeps the case going, the more money the city will pay in legal fees.

“This is a very sad waste of taxpayer money,” Murdock said. “The hypocrisy is sad.”

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